Nissan March 1.4 Review

It's hard to describe this car as being elegant or stately. That's not what it's for. We'd prefer to think of it as light, cheerful, sweet, and the quintessential bubble on wheels. Not like anyone could help mentioning it, because the front end is very much bug-eyed and charming in the non-masculine sense, and it successfully draws the eye of the onlooker in order to capture their attention.

Epilogue

So neatly packaged and well balanced it is, you'll realise that like most super-compacts, it has virtually no front or rear overhang, and it has been designed so in order to shoot through city traffic like you would a paparazzi. In addition, the car has been softly sprung and mildly damped so you never miss a Kodak, "Canon" or moment. You might even get them movie stars to look, smile and say "aww," but we digress™

Is this the proverbial "hairdresser's car?" You bet! It might also be a car for the young banker starting out, or that sizzling-hot teacher who teaches physical education, or quite possibly something to buy for your girlfriend. Whatever the case, the people most likely to buy one of these would probably be young, without kids, urban and has lots of pets. On the other end of the scale, Singapore's war-heroes might take a shining to its dimensions, competence and charisma.

The minor revisions done to this March for it's end-2007 iteration are obvious and simple - a different set of front mechanisms such as chromed lights that have their signal indicators stored inside them, grille inserts and a new bumper. In addition to the new light green as seen in the pictures, paintwork options are up to eight different colours, including Nissan's award-winning China Blue.

Nitty-Gritty

Five doors, easy access and a cheery, pleasant cabin layout. The March's seats are incredibly supportive and functional for a car it's size. The cutesy theme continues inside the cabin, where the colour and finish of the air-conditioner dials reminded us of Japanese household appliances with their bright jolly opaque finish.

Colours for the interior are different as well - the chequered seats are a neat touch, and so are the door handles which look like what you might find in your own home instead of a car. In here you will find a redesigned instrument cluster, but still no tachometer. Yes. It bothers us.

Taller passengers might find it a little bit of a squeeze, but Nissan has done well to create space inside a small, confined area.

Storage compartments abound in the front and rear for all those "things" that somehow find their way into the car. These cars now come with a single CD player, power steering, electric windows and remote central locking as standard.

We found the driving position to quite on the high side, and although it makes for good visibility, we just don't feel "cocooned" like when the seats are lowered down into the cockpit. On the bright side, visibility is very good from the driver's perspective, and those classy little wing mirrors are not "all looks and no action".

Zippidy Doo-Dah

Give it some gas and you'll find that this 1.4 litre wants to be revved till the valves come out to play. Outright fast it is not, but a willing performer and entertainer it is, making acceleration related-lane changes a breeze. This puny engine pumps out only 95bhp worth of power at 5600rpm and 137Nm of torque at just 3200rpm.

But when tested, it jumps to 100km/h in only 13 seconds with a full tank of gas and with one passenger, thanks to it's relatively short gears. Not to worry though, because for the sedate driver, the car still achieves a thrifty 6L/100km on the average, and it only looses it's edge above 140km/h - a speed, coupled with our relatively choking speed limits, which city dwellers will probably never see in their lifetime.

Darting in and out of city car parks is a piece of pie as the steering is precise yet light. Everything followed in that fashion - light and progressive. Maybe a little too light. While it firms up at higher speeds, a little more consistency with the powered rack's weight wouldn't hurt!

Less inspiring is the March once a twisty stretch of road is breached. There was a surprising amount of body roll, while bumps in the middle of a corner were able to kick the steering back a good deal. What it had though, was strong grip - even in the wet. This was despite the rather small, 14 inch 165/70 profile tyres, while the brakes offered good stopping power.

Obviously, the March was designed more with comfort in mind than BMW-like driving dynamics, but in its defence, it isn't bad to drive. It doesn't whine, or dread being put under pressure, but it does get a little vocal at higher revs.

The car's transmission, which to our relief, wasn't of the continuously variable kind, worked like a charm. The gears matched the engine's torque band really well, and it convinced us traditionalists of the fact that 4 ratios with an overdrive button and a viscous torque converter really isn't a shortcoming amidst today's slew of "sequential-manual this" and "direct-shift that."

Too March too late?

The March proudly holds a four star Euro NCAP rating in crash tests. It comes with twin front airbags as standard, and side airbags in upper-spec models. ABS is standard, as are ISOFIX child seat mounting points on the rear seats.

The standard equipment list on the basic, 1.4 "Comfort" is pretty impressive. For $57,000 (correct as of 13th March 2008) you start off with a Plasma Cluster air conditioner that works in the way of an air-cleaner, leather wrapped power steering, electric windows, ABS with electronic brake force distribution and brake assist, remote central locking, twin front airbags and a CD player.

The 1.4 "Elegant" model adds a body kit, keyless entry and engine start functions, a full climate control suite that goes digital, multi-reflector automatic headlamps, 15-inch rims and 6 airbags, for $4500 more. We think this is incredible value, and competitive considering many of its European rivals, if not some of the cheaper, effective but very well-built Korean offerings.

For what it is, the Nissan March is in it's entirety, a free spirit, and it seeks likeminded owners to take it's reigns. "March regimentale" it will not, but roam the back, "kampong" roads it will, and with much aplomb and joy too!